Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the President of Mexico, said that he has been diagnosed with COVID-19 for the second time as infections have surged across the globe with the new variant coming up. He earlier tested positive in 2021 and recovered from the disease.

Obrador said on his social media accounts that he will remain isolated and will work from the office in a virtual manner as the “symptoms are light”. The Mexican President further added that Adan Augusto Lopez Hernandez– the country’s Interior Secretary– will be in charge of conducting the press conferences and other events.

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COVID-19 has been raging in Mexico since the start of this year, with the country confirming that cases saw a 186% increase in the last week. Coronavirus has also reached the Obrador’s Cabinet Secretaries. According to reports from Associated Press, the heads of the Economy and Environmental departments said they had tested positive.

Lopez Obrador claimed the omicron variant is “a little COVID,” noting hospitalisations and deaths had not increased at the same rate. However, experts say those are both lagging indicators that may not show up for weeks after infections spike.

The administration has been rigid about conducting mass tests for COVID-19 in Mexico and has tagged the strategy as a waste of money. Obrador called on companies not to require coronavirus tests for employees.

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Mexico passed 300,000 test-confirmed coronavirus deaths last week, but so little testing is done in the country of 126 million that a government review of death certificates puts the real toll at almost 460,000, according to reports from the Associated Press.

The virus spike was largely responsible for the cancelation of 260 flights between Jan. 6 and Jan. 10, the president said, as airline employees got infected and had to isolate, causing staff shortages.

(With AP inputs)